Photo by: Corbis Corporation
A slew of words come to mind when describing the Resident Evil movies. In particular, the terms “god-awful” and “terrible” and “crime against film” come to mind.
After the nearly incomprehensible conclusion of “Resident Evil: Apocalypse,” it’s quite surprising that producers managed to throw together a third movie.
There is no denying that the bar was set low for “Resident Evil: Extinction.” The film’s problems include decidedly inexplicable plot developments, one-dimensional characters, sub-par acting and dialogue the likes of which would make a monkey with a typewriter cringe. The film barely manages to satisfy its terribly low expectations.
The story, as far as one can tell, begins sometime after the end of the second movie. Alice, played by the shapely Milla Jovovich, wanders the desert, hunted by the nefarious Umbrella Corporation. Her story is tragic; everywhere she goes, people tend to die despite her newly developed psychic powers.
The world has been taken over by the T-Virus, which has begun to not only turn people into zombies, but also kill the environment. Earth has thus become a desert and the few survivors must keep on the move, scavenging for food and fuel while staying one step ahead of the ravenous undead. Claire Redfield, played by Ali Larter of NBC’s “Heroes,” leads one such convoy. She’s not the most formidable star power, but certainly noteworthy.
That unfortunately is, quite literally, the extent of the plot. While there are some other parts about fleeing to safety in Alaska and a mad scientist trying to domesticate zombies, it all serves one purpose: an excuse for Milla Jovovich to run around decapitating zombies.
Make no mistake, this is an action movie. It starts out with some suspenseful build-up and for the first 20 minutes, it feels like it is going to be a proper horror movie, but that gives way to zombie maulings and wild gunfights. In fact, the film provides plenty of action, plenty of gore and little of that troublesome dialogue that always ruins the fun.
Unfortunately, while the special effects are generally good. They don’t hide the lack of forward action. Alice is supposed to be a genetically enhanced super-soldier built for zombie busting. Toss some psychic powers into the mix and keep in mind that this is Milla Jovovich and she spends most of her time barely dressed, and you’ve got something that should be visually spectacular. But the director relies entirely too much on shaky cameras and awkward angles. The gunfights are a little more fun to watch, but those are also simpler to film.
“Resident Evil: Extinction” is easily the best of the trilogy, but that is really not saying much. Avoid this movie if you want something with substance. If you are out for a mindless action flick, there are many better options out there. However, if you just cannot get enough of zombies and you don’t feel like renting “28 Days Later” or “Dawn of the Dead,” this might be the flick for you.
